TEN-MAN Malaysia almost pulled off a historic win against mighty Japan when they led 2-1 with only eight minutes left on the clock in yesterday’s Group J match of the AFC Under-16 qualifiers in Vientiane, Laos.
However, Japan, who won the AFC Under-16 Championship in 2018 in Kuala Lumpur, held their nerves and netted in stoppage time to earn a point and top the group to qualify for next year’s tournament proper.
For Malaysia, it was a missed opportunity as they needed to beat Japan for a chance of making the trip to Bahrain next year.
The final outcome for Malaysia, however, could have been different if they had taken measures when training outdoors in the haze in Kuala Lumpur.
The gung-ho approach led to several players falling ill and most could not train well before their trip to Vientiane.
After thrashing Cambodia 7-0 in their opening match without several key players, P. Maniam’s side were embarrassed 1-0 by Laos on Friday.
Although the coach had some of his regulars back in the starting line up, they were lacking match fitness, and could not score against the hosts.
For the record, Malaysia had featured in the last three AFC Under-16 Championship editions. In the 2014 edition, Malaysia recorded their best-ever result by reaching the quarter-finals under then-coach S. Balachandran.
More was expected from Maniam’s boys in the qualifiers following their victory in the AFF Under-15 Championship last month.
Japan topped Group J with seven points, followed by Laos (six points), Malaysia (four) and winless Cambodia.
The draw against the Japanese side, however, is still a fantastic result considering that Malaysia were down to 10 players after 63 minutes following the expulsion of goalkeeper Zulhilmi Sharani.
Japan took the lead after the sending off when Rui Osaka netted from the penalty spot.
Despite the numerical disadvantage, Malaysia continued to press and were rewarded when defender Daniel Edzuan Anuar netted from the penalty spot to level the match. He then scored Malaysia’s second eight minutes before the final whistle.
It gave Japan anxious moments, but they denied Malaysia from recording a famous win by scoring in the fourth minute of stoppage time through Yamato Naito.
“We came into the match with the mindset to win. There were positives in today’s (yesterday) performance,” said Maniam yesterday.
“Despite the sending off, my players fought hard in the hope of winning the match.
“Although we did not get the required result, I am still very proud of my players.
“I believe these players will make a smooth transition to senior football and represent Harimau Malaya one day.”